Greenpeace sues US Government for granting permit to BP Amoco’s Northstar project

The environmental group says the departments granted the permit despite a lack of adequate provisions to deal with oil spills.

The court case is the latest move in Greenpeace’s campaign against the oil company’s Arctic drilling plans (see related story). On April 13th, shareholders will vote at BP Amoco’s AGM on a resolution that calls on the company to increase investments in solar power.

Opening briefs filed in San Francisco’s Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit charge that the federal Mineral Management Service and other federal agencies violated the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when they approved the Northstar project.

Greenpeace allege that BP Amoco’s oil spill response plan is defective and that the company has not assessed where oil spilled from the pipeline or from the facility itself would spread. The case is expected to be heard by a federal court in mid-summer.

In a related action, Greenpeace has filed an appeal with the Alaska Superior Court in Anchorage against the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. The appeal alleges the illegal use of freshwater in the construction of ice roads for the Northstar Project. Greenpeace says BP Amoco has used close to the entire amount of water predicted for the 15-year lifetime of the project.